We had a very full weekend and I'm totally exhausted from it now.
Friday after work we met with Fr. Frank for another marriage prep discussion. We always have great talks with him and I keep getting him off topic because I ask questions about something he's said and we go down a whole different path. I feel kind of bad about this, especially since his time is limited, but he said he doesn't mind too much.
The rest of Friday was just dinner and then sitting around watching TV. Nice and relaxing; just wish I had appreciated that more then.
A friend of mine was staying at my place this weekend, so her and I went for an hour-long walk Saturday morning. Chris and I attended a baby shower that afternoon and then went to a movie that night. We saw Ratatouille, which was very cute.
Sunday after Mass we went to Chris' house for breakfast and then left a few hours later to drive to Cincinnati. We went to see the opera Aida by Verdi. I've always wanted to see Aida and it was really good. The sets were amazing!! After the opera we crossed back over the river to Newport and had dinner at a very nice seafood restaurant there. We walked around the Newport area for a few minutes before finally deciding that we needed to head home. I got back to my house around 10:15 and pretty much went straight to bed.
Definitely a full and exhausting weekend! But we had a great time! I leave for Atlanta (again!) in a few days, in the meantime I guess I need to get back to work! Hope everyone out there has a wonderful week!
Monday, July 30, 2007
Thursday, July 26, 2007
Catholic Topic of the Week 4
Finally, the Catholic Topic I've been promising (and it's a long one) ...
On July 10, 2007, the Vatican released a document written by the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith. After releasing the document the press started misreporting on it, almost immediately. A friend of mine asked for my opinion on this matter. I have been reading and hearing a lot about it and I want to take this opportunity to reflect on it as well as point out other people’s thoughts or interpretations of the document. By talking about this document I feel that this Catholic Topic of the Week basically is a way of explaining what the Catholic Church believes about itself.
The document itself is actually pretty short. It is entitled “Responses to Some Questions Regarding Certain Aspects of the Doctrine of the Church.” Once the Vatican released the document it came to the attention of many news agencies which immediately began misinterpreting the purpose of the document. News reports I heard reported that the Catholic Church was making claims that salvation could be found only through the Catholic Church, that the Catholic Church thought only Catholics were Christians, and so forth. This is NOT what the document said and is NOT what the Church teaches.
I have become acutely aware lately of how horrible the media is about reporting on a lot of things. So much so that I now question everything I hear coming from the news. However, the Internet is an amazing thing. You can locate the documents and read the texts yourself, you can do your own research, and there are plenty of bloggers in the blogosphere doing much better research than many reporters these days. In regard to reporting on the Catholic Church, the media has a field day misinterpreting things from the Church and just never bothers to do their research. Two incidents of late: the Pope’s speech at Regensburg many months ago (maybe last summer even) in which one sentence from a very long speech was taken completely out of context and, more recently, the previously mentioned document. Speaking of which, here is what I have to say on that.
The document speaks honestly about what the Catholic Church teaches about what it believes in itself. So think about this: if you went to a church that said to its members, “We can only teach you part of the Truth, but we don’t have the fullness of Truth we’re just here for community building” would you continue going to that church? Regardless of your current faith, would you really want to go to a church (or synagogue or mosque) that didn’t believe that it had the fullness of truth? One of the headlines I saw that I did like after this document was released was: “The Pope is Catholic” or something like that. (He’s Catholic? Who knew!!) Basically, the Church is saying that it believes that it has the fullness of truth. As a Catholic, I’m very glad to hear that my Church thinks this way of itself. Otherwise, why would I bother going? I do like the community and all that, but the important part is the faith itself.
The response to this, though, has been: but what about the other Christian faiths? Well, within this document the Church does not deny that the Protestant communities also contain elements of the Truth within their teachings. The news reports overlooked this detail, or just didn’t bother reporting on it. Salvation is attainable through other faiths, the Church doesn’t deny that. And never has. Much of this was in the Vatican II documents, and even then it was just a reaffirmation of what the Church had always taught. Basically this is nothing new. But the Church would not be the Church if it said that the fullness of Truth is with us and it is with all the other churches that separated from us from the 16th century on through to today. Otherwise we’d all still be one united church like we were over 500 years ago. But we’re not and the Church knows this and continuously prays for unity again one day among all Christians. It comes down to this: the Church would be denying its own teachings to say that all churches are the same as it is.
I’m not sure if that makes a lot of sense. But there are other people talking about this same issue who are much better at writing about it than I am. Here are two of the many I read. The second blog (www.inforumblog.com) is a great blog overall. I highly recommend it. Both of these links are more on this same topic:
http://www.deoomnisgloria.com/archives/2007/07/did_pope_benedict_xvi_really_r.html
http://www.inforumblog.com/?p=1016
On a related note: Monday evening, I went to a session of Theology on Tap. This is a national young adult ministry that began in Chicago over 20-25 years ago. In Lexington it is held twice a year for six weeks each time. Monday was the third of the current series; this series is called Rome to Home: A Catholic History Timeline. Monday Fr. Frank spoke on the Reformation (yes, the priest that’s also doing our wedding in October). At the beginning of his talk he mentioned that there are currently over 33,000 Christian denominations in the United States alone. And that number is growing every day. From the time of Christ and the Apostles until sometime around 1500 there was only one Christian Church in the world (well, there was the split in 1054 when the Eastern Orthodox disagreed with Rome on some issues, but that was a different kind of split than what happened in the Reformation). In 500 years the Church has splintered to tens of thousands of Christian denominations world-wide.
That’s absolutely amazing!! Christ established one church on Earth and for 1500 years (roughly) that was the Catholic Church. But now Christians are divided, into many, many, many segments. For this reason the Church can not in good conscience call Protestant communities “churches” because we see them as divided from the one Church of Christ, the one He established on Earth. Yes, many people have taken offence to this, but I refer you to my earlier statement: Would you be a part of a church that didn’t claim some kind of fullness of truth in its teachings? Then why shouldn’t the Catholic Church think that way of itself?
There is so much more that could be said about this and so many interrelated issues. But it’s too much to go into here. This is why this document was written for theologians and not for the lay person. This is also part of the reason I started doing these Catholic Topics of the Week: to explore the many beliefs of the Catholic faith.
In closing, please pray for the unity of all Christians into the one true Church. Pray that one day the Church may be “one, holy, catholic, and apostolic” once again.
On July 10, 2007, the Vatican released a document written by the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith. After releasing the document the press started misreporting on it, almost immediately. A friend of mine asked for my opinion on this matter. I have been reading and hearing a lot about it and I want to take this opportunity to reflect on it as well as point out other people’s thoughts or interpretations of the document. By talking about this document I feel that this Catholic Topic of the Week basically is a way of explaining what the Catholic Church believes about itself.
The document itself is actually pretty short. It is entitled “Responses to Some Questions Regarding Certain Aspects of the Doctrine of the Church.” Once the Vatican released the document it came to the attention of many news agencies which immediately began misinterpreting the purpose of the document. News reports I heard reported that the Catholic Church was making claims that salvation could be found only through the Catholic Church, that the Catholic Church thought only Catholics were Christians, and so forth. This is NOT what the document said and is NOT what the Church teaches.
I have become acutely aware lately of how horrible the media is about reporting on a lot of things. So much so that I now question everything I hear coming from the news. However, the Internet is an amazing thing. You can locate the documents and read the texts yourself, you can do your own research, and there are plenty of bloggers in the blogosphere doing much better research than many reporters these days. In regard to reporting on the Catholic Church, the media has a field day misinterpreting things from the Church and just never bothers to do their research. Two incidents of late: the Pope’s speech at Regensburg many months ago (maybe last summer even) in which one sentence from a very long speech was taken completely out of context and, more recently, the previously mentioned document. Speaking of which, here is what I have to say on that.
The document speaks honestly about what the Catholic Church teaches about what it believes in itself. So think about this: if you went to a church that said to its members, “We can only teach you part of the Truth, but we don’t have the fullness of Truth we’re just here for community building” would you continue going to that church? Regardless of your current faith, would you really want to go to a church (or synagogue or mosque) that didn’t believe that it had the fullness of truth? One of the headlines I saw that I did like after this document was released was: “The Pope is Catholic” or something like that. (He’s Catholic? Who knew!!) Basically, the Church is saying that it believes that it has the fullness of truth. As a Catholic, I’m very glad to hear that my Church thinks this way of itself. Otherwise, why would I bother going? I do like the community and all that, but the important part is the faith itself.
The response to this, though, has been: but what about the other Christian faiths? Well, within this document the Church does not deny that the Protestant communities also contain elements of the Truth within their teachings. The news reports overlooked this detail, or just didn’t bother reporting on it. Salvation is attainable through other faiths, the Church doesn’t deny that. And never has. Much of this was in the Vatican II documents, and even then it was just a reaffirmation of what the Church had always taught. Basically this is nothing new. But the Church would not be the Church if it said that the fullness of Truth is with us and it is with all the other churches that separated from us from the 16th century on through to today. Otherwise we’d all still be one united church like we were over 500 years ago. But we’re not and the Church knows this and continuously prays for unity again one day among all Christians. It comes down to this: the Church would be denying its own teachings to say that all churches are the same as it is.
I’m not sure if that makes a lot of sense. But there are other people talking about this same issue who are much better at writing about it than I am. Here are two of the many I read. The second blog (www.inforumblog.com) is a great blog overall. I highly recommend it. Both of these links are more on this same topic:
http://www.deoomnisgloria.com/archives/2007/07/did_pope_benedict_xvi_really_r.html
http://www.inforumblog.com/?p=1016
On a related note: Monday evening, I went to a session of Theology on Tap. This is a national young adult ministry that began in Chicago over 20-25 years ago. In Lexington it is held twice a year for six weeks each time. Monday was the third of the current series; this series is called Rome to Home: A Catholic History Timeline. Monday Fr. Frank spoke on the Reformation (yes, the priest that’s also doing our wedding in October). At the beginning of his talk he mentioned that there are currently over 33,000 Christian denominations in the United States alone. And that number is growing every day. From the time of Christ and the Apostles until sometime around 1500 there was only one Christian Church in the world (well, there was the split in 1054 when the Eastern Orthodox disagreed with Rome on some issues, but that was a different kind of split than what happened in the Reformation). In 500 years the Church has splintered to tens of thousands of Christian denominations world-wide.
That’s absolutely amazing!! Christ established one church on Earth and for 1500 years (roughly) that was the Catholic Church. But now Christians are divided, into many, many, many segments. For this reason the Church can not in good conscience call Protestant communities “churches” because we see them as divided from the one Church of Christ, the one He established on Earth. Yes, many people have taken offence to this, but I refer you to my earlier statement: Would you be a part of a church that didn’t claim some kind of fullness of truth in its teachings? Then why shouldn’t the Catholic Church think that way of itself?
There is so much more that could be said about this and so many interrelated issues. But it’s too much to go into here. This is why this document was written for theologians and not for the lay person. This is also part of the reason I started doing these Catholic Topics of the Week: to explore the many beliefs of the Catholic faith.
In closing, please pray for the unity of all Christians into the one true Church. Pray that one day the Church may be “one, holy, catholic, and apostolic” once again.
Feast day of Sts. Joachim and Anne
Today is the Feast day of Saints Joachim and Anne, the parents of the Virgin Mary. This reminds me of something Fr. Frank was telling Chris and I on Sunday morning.
After Mass on Sunday we went wondering around the Church grounds to see where some nice picture spots would be. I wanted to find a little side garden that one of my co-workers had mentioned to me. We found it and there was a statue there of what I thought was the Virgin Mary. Only it didn't look like her ... well, it didn't look like a typical portrayal of her. But there were no markings on it either. As we left the garden we ran into Fr. Frank.
We talked with him a bit and then I asked if he knew anything about the statue. He had also assumed it was Mary but had never really taken a good look at it. Chris said she was holding a lily, so we wondered what saints were typically pictured with a lily.
He mentioned St. Therese since she is usually pictured with a flower, but not a lily. Then he said that the lily does figure into the story of Saint Joseph and Mary.
The story is (and it is just a story, there is no way to verify it) that Saint Anne was trying to pick out a husband for her daughter Mary and there were several men there. Saint Joseph was among them and suddenly a lily grew out of the top of his staff. Taking that as a sign from God (honestly, who wouldn't!) she chose Joseph to be Mary's husband.
Even if it is just a story, it's a nice one.
After Mass on Sunday we went wondering around the Church grounds to see where some nice picture spots would be. I wanted to find a little side garden that one of my co-workers had mentioned to me. We found it and there was a statue there of what I thought was the Virgin Mary. Only it didn't look like her ... well, it didn't look like a typical portrayal of her. But there were no markings on it either. As we left the garden we ran into Fr. Frank.
We talked with him a bit and then I asked if he knew anything about the statue. He had also assumed it was Mary but had never really taken a good look at it. Chris said she was holding a lily, so we wondered what saints were typically pictured with a lily.
He mentioned St. Therese since she is usually pictured with a flower, but not a lily. Then he said that the lily does figure into the story of Saint Joseph and Mary.
The story is (and it is just a story, there is no way to verify it) that Saint Anne was trying to pick out a husband for her daughter Mary and there were several men there. Saint Joseph was among them and suddenly a lily grew out of the top of his staff. Taking that as a sign from God (honestly, who wouldn't!) she chose Joseph to be Mary's husband.
Even if it is just a story, it's a nice one.
Potter is in the house!
I'm so excited!! My copy of the seventh Harry Potter book arrived in the mail today!! I'm dying to start it but I promised myself I would first finish the library book I currently have out.
Darn my busy life, I want to READ!!
Thankfully I only have about 3-4 more chapters left in the library book and then I'm moving on to the final Harry Potter book.
All the other books waiting to be read will just have to keep waiting. Potter automatically gets moved to the top of the stack.
Robin: you can't borrow it when you come see me this weekend; you'll have to come visit another time to get your hands on it!
Darn my busy life, I want to READ!!
Thankfully I only have about 3-4 more chapters left in the library book and then I'm moving on to the final Harry Potter book.
All the other books waiting to be read will just have to keep waiting. Potter automatically gets moved to the top of the stack.
Robin: you can't borrow it when you come see me this weekend; you'll have to come visit another time to get your hands on it!
Wednesday, July 25, 2007
Quick Note
I'm in Lexington again, been here since Saturday. The trip to Atlanta was nice, here's a quick update on that:
My brother cooked a wonderful meal the first night I was home which was absolutely spectacular!! Thursday I drove into Atlanta for a one day workshop that was actually very interesting and informative. It made me think about the future of my profession in a way I hadn't considered before and for me it emphasized the importance of what I do (and people like me) and how undervalued our work is not only in the outside world but even within our own library profession.
Friday I went with my sister and niece to have her 18 months pictures made (she's so cute!). The my mom and I ran some errands and I just hung out at home that evening. Nice to relax and have nothing to do for once. Saturday I came back to Lexington.
Since then I've been busy at work and with a few other little [wedding] things. I want to post something for a Catholic Topic of the Week very soon. You might see something tonight or tomorrow night (I hope!!). I haven't forgotten, I just want to make sure I do a good job with this one so I'm taking my time.
Okay, back to work for me!! Until next time ... K
My brother cooked a wonderful meal the first night I was home which was absolutely spectacular!! Thursday I drove into Atlanta for a one day workshop that was actually very interesting and informative. It made me think about the future of my profession in a way I hadn't considered before and for me it emphasized the importance of what I do (and people like me) and how undervalued our work is not only in the outside world but even within our own library profession.
Friday I went with my sister and niece to have her 18 months pictures made (she's so cute!). The my mom and I ran some errands and I just hung out at home that evening. Nice to relax and have nothing to do for once. Saturday I came back to Lexington.
Since then I've been busy at work and with a few other little [wedding] things. I want to post something for a Catholic Topic of the Week very soon. You might see something tonight or tomorrow night (I hope!!). I haven't forgotten, I just want to make sure I do a good job with this one so I'm taking my time.
Okay, back to work for me!! Until next time ... K
Monday, July 16, 2007
In Lexington ... for now
Good Monday to everyone!!
I got back to Lexington Sunday afternoon around 3pm. I had to travel through a couple pretty bad storms on my way home, but I made it safely and still got back much earlier than Chris expected me.
The trip was good. We had dinner on Friday night at a little Italian place in Columbus and then went and got ice cream. I got two small scoops of two different flavors: Belgian milk chocolate and some kind of vanilla and raspberry thing. It was very good! Saturday we had breakfast at the B&B and then went off to our meeting. We met from 10am until just after 5:30pm, with breaks of course. I think the meeting was shorter this year than last. Several reasons for that: we seemed more prepared, the budget was easier, and there were very few items on the agenda that were controversial. So it went well. That evening we went to a very nice Spanish restaurant. The chef sent out a small dish with just a spoonful of octopus for each of us as a pre-meal item. I also got a baby spinach salad and then my main meal was a grilled beef fillet with potatoes and asparagus. Oh and the dessert!! I shared a serving of the Warm Chocolate Pudding Cake with a colleague. It was really awesome. Several of us also had a glass of some kind of Merlot that was supposed to have a hint of chocolate in it. Can you tell I like chocolate? Not sure that I tasted it in the wine, but it was a nice description.
So that was it. I am in meetings most of today while I'm at work and they are all over at the main library. The first one is over, I went and had lunch, and now I'm doing this before I go to the second meeting. Just one more day of work and then I'm off to Atlanta on Wednesday. This trip is both work and a little vacation.
Hope everyone has a great week!! I promise to post something soon for the Catholic Topic of the Week. I've been promising for a while now and I hope to get to it soon. Maybe while I'm in Atlanta.
I got back to Lexington Sunday afternoon around 3pm. I had to travel through a couple pretty bad storms on my way home, but I made it safely and still got back much earlier than Chris expected me.
The trip was good. We had dinner on Friday night at a little Italian place in Columbus and then went and got ice cream. I got two small scoops of two different flavors: Belgian milk chocolate and some kind of vanilla and raspberry thing. It was very good! Saturday we had breakfast at the B&B and then went off to our meeting. We met from 10am until just after 5:30pm, with breaks of course. I think the meeting was shorter this year than last. Several reasons for that: we seemed more prepared, the budget was easier, and there were very few items on the agenda that were controversial. So it went well. That evening we went to a very nice Spanish restaurant. The chef sent out a small dish with just a spoonful of octopus for each of us as a pre-meal item. I also got a baby spinach salad and then my main meal was a grilled beef fillet with potatoes and asparagus. Oh and the dessert!! I shared a serving of the Warm Chocolate Pudding Cake with a colleague. It was really awesome. Several of us also had a glass of some kind of Merlot that was supposed to have a hint of chocolate in it. Can you tell I like chocolate? Not sure that I tasted it in the wine, but it was a nice description.
So that was it. I am in meetings most of today while I'm at work and they are all over at the main library. The first one is over, I went and had lunch, and now I'm doing this before I go to the second meeting. Just one more day of work and then I'm off to Atlanta on Wednesday. This trip is both work and a little vacation.
Hope everyone has a great week!! I promise to post something soon for the Catholic Topic of the Week. I've been promising for a while now and I hope to get to it soon. Maybe while I'm in Atlanta.
Thursday, July 12, 2007
Before I leave town ...
Before I leave town for the weekend I wanted to post about a few things.
First, I was hoping to post a Catholic Topic of the Week before I left, but I just haven't had time. My friend Tara made an excellent suggestion and I want to look at the issue she brought up. So when I get back from my next two trips (this weekend and then next week) I hope to post on that. In the meantime, you might have seen something about this in the news on Monday or Tuesday of this week. The Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith at the Vatican released a document on Monday (dated June 29) that caused a bit of a stir. Basically the document just answers five questions, rather briefly, and is only reaffirming already held Catholic doctrines, not stating anything new. It's actually a very short document that you can find by clicking on this Vatican website. Take a look and when I next get a chance I'll post some comments about the document and I look forward to engaging in some dialogue with all of you.
Second, I had a somewhat busy week. I have had meetings at work almost every day and I finally got all my reports done (end of the year reports, reports for the meeting this Saturday, and others). I've also been busy gathering all the things I needed for my trip this weekend. I hope I have everything!!
Speaking of my trip: I head to Columbus tomorrow. This excursion is for a Board meeting of one of my professional organizations. (See the Music OCLC Users Group link to the left for more info.) There are six of us for this meeting and although it is a lot of work, we are pretty casual and we have a good time. One person lives in Columbus and the other five of us stay at a B&B around the corner from his house. Last year I was the only female on the Board. This year two positions were opened and were both filled by females. I like the guys (four of my closest college friends are guys), but it'll be nice to socialize with some women friends over the weekend too!! Last year I was able to connect online at the B&B, hopefully I'll be able to do that this time as well so I can keep in touch via this blog.
Tonight, I went to meet with the wedding coordinator again. The head of the company emailed me this week to say that her assistant who was supposed to handle my wedding found a different job, but she had hired someone new and she wanted us to meet. So I went down there today to meet her and she's very nice. The cool thing was that she just did a wedding at the Marriott Griffin Gate and she met my photographer at that wedding. I saw pictures of that wedding when I last met with my photographer and it was a gorgeous wedding. Meeting with her and going over everything made me feel better about where we are. I've basically done everything I could have done by now and more. So that was good to hear.
That's about it from the Bluegrass State!! Have a great weekend!!
First, I was hoping to post a Catholic Topic of the Week before I left, but I just haven't had time. My friend Tara made an excellent suggestion and I want to look at the issue she brought up. So when I get back from my next two trips (this weekend and then next week) I hope to post on that. In the meantime, you might have seen something about this in the news on Monday or Tuesday of this week. The Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith at the Vatican released a document on Monday (dated June 29) that caused a bit of a stir. Basically the document just answers five questions, rather briefly, and is only reaffirming already held Catholic doctrines, not stating anything new. It's actually a very short document that you can find by clicking on this Vatican website. Take a look and when I next get a chance I'll post some comments about the document and I look forward to engaging in some dialogue with all of you.
Second, I had a somewhat busy week. I have had meetings at work almost every day and I finally got all my reports done (end of the year reports, reports for the meeting this Saturday, and others). I've also been busy gathering all the things I needed for my trip this weekend. I hope I have everything!!
Speaking of my trip: I head to Columbus tomorrow. This excursion is for a Board meeting of one of my professional organizations. (See the Music OCLC Users Group link to the left for more info.) There are six of us for this meeting and although it is a lot of work, we are pretty casual and we have a good time. One person lives in Columbus and the other five of us stay at a B&B around the corner from his house. Last year I was the only female on the Board. This year two positions were opened and were both filled by females. I like the guys (four of my closest college friends are guys), but it'll be nice to socialize with some women friends over the weekend too!! Last year I was able to connect online at the B&B, hopefully I'll be able to do that this time as well so I can keep in touch via this blog.
Tonight, I went to meet with the wedding coordinator again. The head of the company emailed me this week to say that her assistant who was supposed to handle my wedding found a different job, but she had hired someone new and she wanted us to meet. So I went down there today to meet her and she's very nice. The cool thing was that she just did a wedding at the Marriott Griffin Gate and she met my photographer at that wedding. I saw pictures of that wedding when I last met with my photographer and it was a gorgeous wedding. Meeting with her and going over everything made me feel better about where we are. I've basically done everything I could have done by now and more. So that was good to hear.
That's about it from the Bluegrass State!! Have a great weekend!!
Wednesday, July 11, 2007
Old theaters, old movies
The organist at my church emailed me on Monday and asked if Chris and I would be interested in joining him and his wife to go see a movie on Wednesday night. So we agreed and tonight I headed downtown to the Kentucky Theater where I met up with the organist and his wife and Chris. All four of us had to come separately.
I've been to the Kentucky Theater twice before. Both times I saw recent films and both times there was between 15-20 people there. That wouldn't be too bad, only this theater seats about 300 or more. Chris had never been to the theater, so this was a new experience for him.
Brian (the church organist) thought that maybe it was built around 1923 or 24. He wasn't sure exactly. But he did know that the original Wurlitzer organ was put in around 1926. Cathy (his wife, who is also an organist and sang alto with me in the Italy choir several years ago) was telling me how there is a campaign to bring the original Wurlitzer back. They are currently raising money to do that. I think I've seen the original organ over at UK's campus, in the large concert hall. It's not being used, just on display. I think; it could be a reproduction or maybe just a small exhibit about it (I haven't been over there in a long time).
Anyway, when we walked into the theater there was organ music being played. The organ down near the stage is an electronic reproduction of the original and the organist was a doctoral student I recognized from the library. Following the organ recital, he talked a little about the restoration of the organ, asked for donations, then had everyone stand to sing "My Old Kentucky Home." Okay, I've lived in the state for 7 years now, but I still don't know the words. Then someone else got up, talked a bit about the movie and the actors, and some of the filming and then we began.
But first there was a short. The lights went out, the curtain went up and on the screen was a short Three Stooges film. Once that was over it went straight to the movie: Key Largo. This movie has Humphrey Bogart and Lauren Becall starring in it. It was pretty good and had some very funny moments in it. It's fun to see these old, black and white movies and see how archaic the special effects are and how silly some of the acting is.
I love going to see old movies. And until Brian reminded me of this series, I totally forgot that the Kentucky did this on Wednesday nights throughout the summer. Oh, and the place sells out! I don't know if it sold out tonight, but it was quite packed so it might have. I had a lot of fun!! I picked up the schedule on my way out so I could see what else is planned for the summer. In August they have Harvey with James Stewart, which I definitely want to see!
I've been to the Kentucky Theater twice before. Both times I saw recent films and both times there was between 15-20 people there. That wouldn't be too bad, only this theater seats about 300 or more. Chris had never been to the theater, so this was a new experience for him.
Brian (the church organist) thought that maybe it was built around 1923 or 24. He wasn't sure exactly. But he did know that the original Wurlitzer organ was put in around 1926. Cathy (his wife, who is also an organist and sang alto with me in the Italy choir several years ago) was telling me how there is a campaign to bring the original Wurlitzer back. They are currently raising money to do that. I think I've seen the original organ over at UK's campus, in the large concert hall. It's not being used, just on display. I think; it could be a reproduction or maybe just a small exhibit about it (I haven't been over there in a long time).
Anyway, when we walked into the theater there was organ music being played. The organ down near the stage is an electronic reproduction of the original and the organist was a doctoral student I recognized from the library. Following the organ recital, he talked a little about the restoration of the organ, asked for donations, then had everyone stand to sing "My Old Kentucky Home." Okay, I've lived in the state for 7 years now, but I still don't know the words. Then someone else got up, talked a bit about the movie and the actors, and some of the filming and then we began.
But first there was a short. The lights went out, the curtain went up and on the screen was a short Three Stooges film. Once that was over it went straight to the movie: Key Largo. This movie has Humphrey Bogart and Lauren Becall starring in it. It was pretty good and had some very funny moments in it. It's fun to see these old, black and white movies and see how archaic the special effects are and how silly some of the acting is.
I love going to see old movies. And until Brian reminded me of this series, I totally forgot that the Kentucky did this on Wednesday nights throughout the summer. Oh, and the place sells out! I don't know if it sold out tonight, but it was quite packed so it might have. I had a lot of fun!! I picked up the schedule on my way out so I could see what else is planned for the summer. In August they have Harvey with James Stewart, which I definitely want to see!
Friday, July 06, 2007
In Lieu of the Catholic Topic of the Week
Time has gotten away from me this week, so there will not be a Catholic Topic of the Week from me this week. Except for quick updates, I'm not sure when I'll be able to do another Catholic Topic. I'll be going out of town next weekend but might have time one night next week to work on something before I leave (in between packing and gathing all the papers and reports I need to bring on the trip with me). If not, I know I won't have time the following week, I'll be out of town again. More on those trips later.
Anyway, I do have something in mind. A friend was recently asking me about patron saints, so I might do something on saints, patron saints in particular, or just simply "what is the communion of saints?" We'll see. If you have ideas or suggestions, or websites or books you think I might be interested in looking at, please let me know: just leave a comment at the comments link at the end of this post.
In the meantime, I learn a lot from reading the weekly Catholic Carnival. This is a collection of blog entries that one blogger compiles and summarizes for everyone. It's always someone different that hosts the Carnival week after week and I learn a lot about how different people live their faith, plus I discover lots of other cool Catholic blogs. So in lieu of my Catholic Topic of the Week, here is a link to this week's Carnival:
Catholic Carnival 126.
Enjoy and have a wonderful weekend!!
Anyway, I do have something in mind. A friend was recently asking me about patron saints, so I might do something on saints, patron saints in particular, or just simply "what is the communion of saints?" We'll see. If you have ideas or suggestions, or websites or books you think I might be interested in looking at, please let me know: just leave a comment at the comments link at the end of this post.
In the meantime, I learn a lot from reading the weekly Catholic Carnival. This is a collection of blog entries that one blogger compiles and summarizes for everyone. It's always someone different that hosts the Carnival week after week and I learn a lot about how different people live their faith, plus I discover lots of other cool Catholic blogs. So in lieu of my Catholic Topic of the Week, here is a link to this week's Carnival:
Catholic Carnival 126.
Enjoy and have a wonderful weekend!!
Thursday, July 05, 2007
July 4th Celebrations
The best part of July 4th was having a day off in the middle of the week!! How nice to work two days, have a day off and then work two more days before the weekend. I think we need to revise the work week.
I ended up sleeping in on July 4th, later than planned so I didn't go walking. But I did some errands and one load of laundry. Chris and I also had our first major miscommunication. Well, maybe not major, but I was not very happy at the time. He called me while I was out and we decided that I'd meet him at Lowe's to buy some things for our two houses. Well, I finished my errands and headed over to Lowes and couldn't find him. I was surprised that I beat him there since I was still running errands when we made those plans. So I went outside and sat in one of the swings in front of the store while I waited for him. 20 minutes later I was getting a little perturbed that he hadn't shown up yet and I couldn't call him because he doesn't have a cell phone. (By the way, he's getting one now, I'm buying it for him!) Suddenly I realized that he must have gone to a different Lowe's. When he said he'd meet me at the Lowe's near me I thought okay, not Nicholasville Rd. but Richmond Rd. I forgot that there was a NEW Lowe's on Winchester Rd.!! I hadn't been to the new one yet and I just hadn't thought about it at all, obviously. So partly my fault, but also his. If he had a cell phone I would have known much sooner where he was instead of hanging out in front of the wrong Lowe's for 20 minutes.
He has promised to be more specific the next time.
I also had to go to Georgetown for a concert last night. It started pouring in Lexington right before I left, and we looked up the radar map and saw that Georgetown was also getting storms. It was pretty awful driving there. At 7:30 they decided that yes, we would still play. The rain had stopped and we were in a barn and there were a handful of people there. So we set up, warmed up, and started the concert at 8:05pm. Twice during our performance the skies opened up and I swear the rain and thunder was much louder than the band. I got out of there as soon after the concert was over as I could. But driving home in the rain, the dark, with lightening flashing in the sky (some of it quite scary), and fireworks going off was exhausting.
Last concert is Saturday evening and the weather is supposed to be good. I hope that doesn't change. Hope everyone else had a fun 4th of July!
I ended up sleeping in on July 4th, later than planned so I didn't go walking. But I did some errands and one load of laundry. Chris and I also had our first major miscommunication. Well, maybe not major, but I was not very happy at the time. He called me while I was out and we decided that I'd meet him at Lowe's to buy some things for our two houses. Well, I finished my errands and headed over to Lowes and couldn't find him. I was surprised that I beat him there since I was still running errands when we made those plans. So I went outside and sat in one of the swings in front of the store while I waited for him. 20 minutes later I was getting a little perturbed that he hadn't shown up yet and I couldn't call him because he doesn't have a cell phone. (By the way, he's getting one now, I'm buying it for him!) Suddenly I realized that he must have gone to a different Lowe's. When he said he'd meet me at the Lowe's near me I thought okay, not Nicholasville Rd. but Richmond Rd. I forgot that there was a NEW Lowe's on Winchester Rd.!! I hadn't been to the new one yet and I just hadn't thought about it at all, obviously. So partly my fault, but also his. If he had a cell phone I would have known much sooner where he was instead of hanging out in front of the wrong Lowe's for 20 minutes.
He has promised to be more specific the next time.
I also had to go to Georgetown for a concert last night. It started pouring in Lexington right before I left, and we looked up the radar map and saw that Georgetown was also getting storms. It was pretty awful driving there. At 7:30 they decided that yes, we would still play. The rain had stopped and we were in a barn and there were a handful of people there. So we set up, warmed up, and started the concert at 8:05pm. Twice during our performance the skies opened up and I swear the rain and thunder was much louder than the band. I got out of there as soon after the concert was over as I could. But driving home in the rain, the dark, with lightening flashing in the sky (some of it quite scary), and fireworks going off was exhausting.
Last concert is Saturday evening and the weather is supposed to be good. I hope that doesn't change. Hope everyone else had a fun 4th of July!
Tuesday, July 03, 2007
A New Baby!!
Chris' sister had her baby Monday evening in Louisville. She had a little girl named Abigail Michelle. She came into the world on July 2 at 7:33pm at 7 lbs., 7 oz., and 19 inches long.
Congratulations to the parents and big brother Shawn!!
Congratulations to the parents and big brother Shawn!!
Monday, July 02, 2007
Long Anticipated Update
It's been a while since I really updated anyone on what's been happening around here. Not sure if you would say this is a "long anticipated" update, but I've been meaning to do it for a while, so it is for me.
Of course, I went to Atlanta again for a weekend (two weekends ago now). It was lots of fun. I had my first dress fitting and discovered that I actually need taller heels than I had planned on. Fortunately, they won't be too tall! I was anticipating needing 1" heels (which I had even bought already) but now it looks like I need 2-2 1/2" heels. Anyone need a pair of ivory 1" heels? Never been worn, size 7. Just let me know.
I also spent the weekend at my sister's house and got to play with my niece and visit with them those few days. On the Sunday I was there, my bridesmaids had a shower for me. It was so much fun!! They did such an incredible job! Plus I got to see so many people that I hadn't seen in so long!! It was such a good time and so much fun to see friends again that I don't get to see very often at all. I really had a great time!!
Since I've been back in town I've been busy with a variety of things. I've done a few small wedding things and I had another concert Sunday (two more to go!). Saturday night Chris and I went to Cincinnati for the opera. He had never been to an opera before but remembered quite a bit about opera from his music appreciation classes in high school and college. We saw Mozart's Cosi fan tutte. They set it with a 1940s Hollywood theme. It was very cute! Long though, we didn't get back to Lexington until 12:30 or so and it was 1am before I got home and got to bed. I was exhausted. As a result we skipped the early mass on Sunday we normally go to and instead went to the 11am mass.
Actually the 11am mass was nice to go to. The Bishop said that mass and during the mass he officially installed our new Rector at the cathedral. Fr. Mark, the new Rector, seems like a nice guy and he made a few comments at the end of mass about his vision for the cathedral. I especially liked how he emphasized the cathedral parish as the example for the rest of the diocese. The diocese of Lexington is still pretty young and it has been a slow process for the Cathedral to start seeing itself as a Cathedral and not just another parish. Father Paul certainly started us on the right path and I believe Fr. Mark will continue us in that direction.
Also this weekend we had another meeting with Fr. Frank. We finally got to discuss the FOCCUS survey that we had taken a while back. He was very pleased that we got 100% in three categories. He said that is rare and that we got them in what he considers the three most important areas. I forget now what those were. However, he was pleased with all of our scores and we discussed a few issues, but overall we have obviously discussed everything that is important to discuss before getting married. We have another meeting set up for later in July to discuss the theology of marriage.
July is shaping up to be a busy month for me. There will probably be plenty of wedding stuff to think about and I have two trips to take this month, both work related, but one is to Atlanta so I'm combining it with a day of vacation. I still have two concerts this week, plus I hope we'll be going out to Bardstown again very soon to see the newest member of Chris' family!! I also realized recently that I probably need to start trying to get rid of things in my house and maybe even start packing. Time is starting to move faster and October is probably going to be here before I know it!
That's it for now! Hope everyone has a great week!!
Of course, I went to Atlanta again for a weekend (two weekends ago now). It was lots of fun. I had my first dress fitting and discovered that I actually need taller heels than I had planned on. Fortunately, they won't be too tall! I was anticipating needing 1" heels (which I had even bought already) but now it looks like I need 2-2 1/2" heels. Anyone need a pair of ivory 1" heels? Never been worn, size 7. Just let me know.
I also spent the weekend at my sister's house and got to play with my niece and visit with them those few days. On the Sunday I was there, my bridesmaids had a shower for me. It was so much fun!! They did such an incredible job! Plus I got to see so many people that I hadn't seen in so long!! It was such a good time and so much fun to see friends again that I don't get to see very often at all. I really had a great time!!
Since I've been back in town I've been busy with a variety of things. I've done a few small wedding things and I had another concert Sunday (two more to go!). Saturday night Chris and I went to Cincinnati for the opera. He had never been to an opera before but remembered quite a bit about opera from his music appreciation classes in high school and college. We saw Mozart's Cosi fan tutte. They set it with a 1940s Hollywood theme. It was very cute! Long though, we didn't get back to Lexington until 12:30 or so and it was 1am before I got home and got to bed. I was exhausted. As a result we skipped the early mass on Sunday we normally go to and instead went to the 11am mass.
Actually the 11am mass was nice to go to. The Bishop said that mass and during the mass he officially installed our new Rector at the cathedral. Fr. Mark, the new Rector, seems like a nice guy and he made a few comments at the end of mass about his vision for the cathedral. I especially liked how he emphasized the cathedral parish as the example for the rest of the diocese. The diocese of Lexington is still pretty young and it has been a slow process for the Cathedral to start seeing itself as a Cathedral and not just another parish. Father Paul certainly started us on the right path and I believe Fr. Mark will continue us in that direction.
Also this weekend we had another meeting with Fr. Frank. We finally got to discuss the FOCCUS survey that we had taken a while back. He was very pleased that we got 100% in three categories. He said that is rare and that we got them in what he considers the three most important areas. I forget now what those were. However, he was pleased with all of our scores and we discussed a few issues, but overall we have obviously discussed everything that is important to discuss before getting married. We have another meeting set up for later in July to discuss the theology of marriage.
July is shaping up to be a busy month for me. There will probably be plenty of wedding stuff to think about and I have two trips to take this month, both work related, but one is to Atlanta so I'm combining it with a day of vacation. I still have two concerts this week, plus I hope we'll be going out to Bardstown again very soon to see the newest member of Chris' family!! I also realized recently that I probably need to start trying to get rid of things in my house and maybe even start packing. Time is starting to move faster and October is probably going to be here before I know it!
That's it for now! Hope everyone has a great week!!
Wednesday, June 27, 2007
Catholic Topic of the Week 3
In my last post I alluded to an anniversary as part of this week's Catholic Topic. Monday June 25 was the 26th anniversary of the apparition of Mary at Medjugorje, a small village in Bosnia-Herzegovina.
The Blessed Virgin actually appeared first on June 24, 1981 (the feast of the birth of John the Baptist), but the six children who saw her didn't actually see her close up or receive any messages from her until the next day June 25, 1981.
Marian apparitions are fascinating. All Marian apparitions have to be investigated by the Church which tries to determine the authenticity of the apparition. There is a whole process and it gets very confusing. I am not going to get into that aspect here. But I do know that the apparitions of Mary at Medjugorje have not had any official church approval yet, though they are still under investigation.
Regardless, it is a powerful place and one I would love to go visit one day. There are several Marian apparition sites I want to see and this is one of them (the others are Fatima, Portugal; Knock, Ireland; and Lourdes, France).
Back to Medjugorje: the six children saw Mary, who was known to them as the Queen of Peace, every day for a long time. One by one, she revealed six secrets to them after which she stopped appearing to them daily. However, she stills appears to each of them on some kind of regular basis, yearly or monthly or something. I also think a few of them may still see her daily as they have not yet received all 10 secrets. I'm not totally familiar with the entire story, so see the resources at the end of this post for more details.
The first time I heard about Medjugorje was about 5 years ago. I knew someone who went there and I ran into him one night when I was out at a bar with some friends. He had just gotten back from his trip and was telling me all about it. We had each arrived at this bar with a different group of friends and then spent the evening talking with each other (and he drove me back to my car, which worried the guys I was originally with). Anyway, I honestly didn't know what he was talking about when he was explaining his trip and I had never heard of the place he had been to. Before I left him he gave me a little card (not exactly a prayer card, but close) that had a picture of Mary, a prayer, and a little silver medal in it. Now, 5 years later, this friend of mine was recently ordained a priest (see my post from May 19, 2007) and I bet his trip to Medjugorje helped in his discernment of his vocation. And I still have the little card from Medjugorje that he gave me.
I highly recommend reading about Marian apparitions. Reading about them is one of the things that made my faith stronger when I was rediscovering Catholicism and the many riches and wonders it holds. I recommend starting with this book:
Those Who Saw Her by Catherine M. Odell. I have the revised edition from 1995, but there could be a more up to date edition out now. It is published by Our Sunday Visitor Books. It has an entire chapter on Medjugorje as well as ones on many other Marian apparitions.
For lots of information about Medjugorje, including monthly messages from Mary, an overview, information on pilgramages and travel, reflections on the monthly messages, and much, much more, visit this site:
http://www.medjugorje.org/
The site also has information on how to pray the Rosary and about Eucharistic Adoration.
Definitely check this information out. I highly recommend it!
The Blessed Virgin actually appeared first on June 24, 1981 (the feast of the birth of John the Baptist), but the six children who saw her didn't actually see her close up or receive any messages from her until the next day June 25, 1981.
Marian apparitions are fascinating. All Marian apparitions have to be investigated by the Church which tries to determine the authenticity of the apparition. There is a whole process and it gets very confusing. I am not going to get into that aspect here. But I do know that the apparitions of Mary at Medjugorje have not had any official church approval yet, though they are still under investigation.
Regardless, it is a powerful place and one I would love to go visit one day. There are several Marian apparition sites I want to see and this is one of them (the others are Fatima, Portugal; Knock, Ireland; and Lourdes, France).
Back to Medjugorje: the six children saw Mary, who was known to them as the Queen of Peace, every day for a long time. One by one, she revealed six secrets to them after which she stopped appearing to them daily. However, she stills appears to each of them on some kind of regular basis, yearly or monthly or something. I also think a few of them may still see her daily as they have not yet received all 10 secrets. I'm not totally familiar with the entire story, so see the resources at the end of this post for more details.
The first time I heard about Medjugorje was about 5 years ago. I knew someone who went there and I ran into him one night when I was out at a bar with some friends. He had just gotten back from his trip and was telling me all about it. We had each arrived at this bar with a different group of friends and then spent the evening talking with each other (and he drove me back to my car, which worried the guys I was originally with). Anyway, I honestly didn't know what he was talking about when he was explaining his trip and I had never heard of the place he had been to. Before I left him he gave me a little card (not exactly a prayer card, but close) that had a picture of Mary, a prayer, and a little silver medal in it. Now, 5 years later, this friend of mine was recently ordained a priest (see my post from May 19, 2007) and I bet his trip to Medjugorje helped in his discernment of his vocation. And I still have the little card from Medjugorje that he gave me.
I highly recommend reading about Marian apparitions. Reading about them is one of the things that made my faith stronger when I was rediscovering Catholicism and the many riches and wonders it holds. I recommend starting with this book:
Those Who Saw Her by Catherine M. Odell. I have the revised edition from 1995, but there could be a more up to date edition out now. It is published by Our Sunday Visitor Books. It has an entire chapter on Medjugorje as well as ones on many other Marian apparitions.
For lots of information about Medjugorje, including monthly messages from Mary, an overview, information on pilgramages and travel, reflections on the monthly messages, and much, much more, visit this site:
http://www.medjugorje.org/
The site also has information on how to pray the Rosary and about Eucharistic Adoration.
Definitely check this information out. I highly recommend it!
Tuesday, June 26, 2007
Back in town ... again
Hi all!!
I just got back in town again from being in Atlanta over the weekend. I don't have time now to do a lengthy post but wanted to at least put up something quick.
The trip was good and I got to see a lot of people at the bridal shower. I was overwhelmed by the generosity of so many, especially my four wonderful bridesmaids!!! I'll post more later.
I have a Catholic topic of the week in mind, but probably won't get around to posting anything until Wednesday. So look for it then. I'll give a hint though: the 26th anniversary of this event was Monday. Put on your research caps and figure it out if you can. Otherwise, just wait for my post.
Have a great day!! --K
I just got back in town again from being in Atlanta over the weekend. I don't have time now to do a lengthy post but wanted to at least put up something quick.
The trip was good and I got to see a lot of people at the bridal shower. I was overwhelmed by the generosity of so many, especially my four wonderful bridesmaids!!! I'll post more later.
I have a Catholic topic of the week in mind, but probably won't get around to posting anything until Wednesday. So look for it then. I'll give a hint though: the 26th anniversary of this event was Monday. Put on your research caps and figure it out if you can. Otherwise, just wait for my post.
Have a great day!! --K
Wednesday, June 20, 2007
Catholic Topic of the Week 2
A friend of mine recommended looking at the Sacrament of Baptism for this second installmend of the Catholic Topic of the Week. So I thought about this and tried to think of the various questions a non-Catholic would ask about Baptism. I came up with the following questions:
1. Why does the Catholic Church baptize infants?
2. What makes a baptism valid? And does a Protestant convert have to be baptized?
3. Who can baptize?
There are probably many other questions. I don't have a lot of time, but I want to offer some brief answers to the three questions above, offer a personal reflection on the sacrament, and then provide some web links for more information.
1. Why does the Catholic Church baptize infants?
This is a question I have been asked many times and it's not an easy one. Often the question is asked because in many of the Protestant faiths it is believed that it is up to the individual to decide if they are going to be a part of the church or not. Well, the Catholic Church believes that first it is up to the parents to educate their child and to set an example of Christian living. In many other things, parents make the choices for their children because the children are too young. They decide where they will send their kids to school, where they will go to Church, how long they can stay outside to play, and so on and so forth. Therefore, the Church believes that as part of educating our children and making many other decisions for them we should also baptize them into the Church. There is a second part to this. The child does make a decision later in life to continue to fulfill the promises made by their parents on their baptism. This is the Sacrament of Confirmation. At this point the child/young adult re-dedicates their life to the faith. There is a lot more about this in some of the links I will provide below.
(As an aside: I will also say that the order of Confirmation and Baptism has actually varied in some parts of the world and has been experimented with some in the US. From what I have learned about what is called "Restored Order," many of the US Bishops have reverted back to Baptism for infants and Confirmation for older children after trying Restored Order in their dioceses.)
2. What makes a baptism valid? And does a Protestant convert have to be baptized?
A valid Baptism is one in which the words are "I baptize you in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit." That's it. For this reason, to answer the second question, a Protestant who is converting to Catholicism and who was baptized in their original church with those words is not "re-baptized" in the Catholic Church. They will however receive the Sacraments of Reconciliation, Confirmation, and first Eucharist. The Church does recognize valid baptism from other faith communities.
3. Who can baptize?
I threw this question in because it was refered to in my last Catholic Topic posting. I mentioned in there that Deacons can also baptize. There are actually three groups of people who can baptize a baby (or an adult) in the Catholic Church. The first two groups are obvious: priests and deacons. The third group is less obvious and usually happens in an emergency sitution and almost always involving a baby. The third group is the laity. Most people don't know that, but in the case of an emergency an unbaptized baby can be baptized with water by a lay person. This would have to be a special case; for example, a baby is born and something is wrong, there is the fear of death, so someone there can baptize the child.
Personal Reflection
I love baptisms. I always find myself crying at them, even when I just happen to view one from across the church. Occasionally there have been baptisms on Sunday mornings between the Masses (there is about an hour break between 2 of the 3 Sunday morning masses at my church). When I was in the choir, we'd be setting up during that time and if a baptism was going on, we had to set up fast and get out of the way. On occasion I've been able to watch some of the ceremony and it always brings tears to my eyes. To me it is such a special occasion for the parents, the godparents, all the other members of the family, and especially the child. The stain of original sin is being wiped away and the child is welcomed into the church by all those family members gathered around. I especially like the personal baptisms, where one family presents a child to be baptized into the Church, rather than the large gatherings of 5-10 babies at one time.
I'm not sure I can totally explain the overwhelming feeling I have when I watch or have actually been in attendance at a baptism. It is such an awesome mystery and such a beautiful Sacrament.
Additional Information
Here are some links for more info:
This first one is a list of links to articles on baptism as well as some Q&As.
http://www.americancatholic.org/Features/Sacraments/Baptism.asp
This second link comes from the Catholic Answers website and is specifically about infant baptism:
http://www.catholic.com/library/Infant_Baptism.asp
Finally, if you really want to read something scholarly, here is the part of the Cathechism regarding Baptism or the Christian Rite of Initation, from the USCCB website:
http://www.usccb.org/catechism/text/pt2sect2.htm
Hope this was interesting and that the links above will be even more informative.
1. Why does the Catholic Church baptize infants?
2. What makes a baptism valid? And does a Protestant convert have to be baptized?
3. Who can baptize?
There are probably many other questions. I don't have a lot of time, but I want to offer some brief answers to the three questions above, offer a personal reflection on the sacrament, and then provide some web links for more information.
1. Why does the Catholic Church baptize infants?
This is a question I have been asked many times and it's not an easy one. Often the question is asked because in many of the Protestant faiths it is believed that it is up to the individual to decide if they are going to be a part of the church or not. Well, the Catholic Church believes that first it is up to the parents to educate their child and to set an example of Christian living. In many other things, parents make the choices for their children because the children are too young. They decide where they will send their kids to school, where they will go to Church, how long they can stay outside to play, and so on and so forth. Therefore, the Church believes that as part of educating our children and making many other decisions for them we should also baptize them into the Church. There is a second part to this. The child does make a decision later in life to continue to fulfill the promises made by their parents on their baptism. This is the Sacrament of Confirmation. At this point the child/young adult re-dedicates their life to the faith. There is a lot more about this in some of the links I will provide below.
(As an aside: I will also say that the order of Confirmation and Baptism has actually varied in some parts of the world and has been experimented with some in the US. From what I have learned about what is called "Restored Order," many of the US Bishops have reverted back to Baptism for infants and Confirmation for older children after trying Restored Order in their dioceses.)
2. What makes a baptism valid? And does a Protestant convert have to be baptized?
A valid Baptism is one in which the words are "I baptize you in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit." That's it. For this reason, to answer the second question, a Protestant who is converting to Catholicism and who was baptized in their original church with those words is not "re-baptized" in the Catholic Church. They will however receive the Sacraments of Reconciliation, Confirmation, and first Eucharist. The Church does recognize valid baptism from other faith communities.
3. Who can baptize?
I threw this question in because it was refered to in my last Catholic Topic posting. I mentioned in there that Deacons can also baptize. There are actually three groups of people who can baptize a baby (or an adult) in the Catholic Church. The first two groups are obvious: priests and deacons. The third group is less obvious and usually happens in an emergency sitution and almost always involving a baby. The third group is the laity. Most people don't know that, but in the case of an emergency an unbaptized baby can be baptized with water by a lay person. This would have to be a special case; for example, a baby is born and something is wrong, there is the fear of death, so someone there can baptize the child.
Personal Reflection
I love baptisms. I always find myself crying at them, even when I just happen to view one from across the church. Occasionally there have been baptisms on Sunday mornings between the Masses (there is about an hour break between 2 of the 3 Sunday morning masses at my church). When I was in the choir, we'd be setting up during that time and if a baptism was going on, we had to set up fast and get out of the way. On occasion I've been able to watch some of the ceremony and it always brings tears to my eyes. To me it is such a special occasion for the parents, the godparents, all the other members of the family, and especially the child. The stain of original sin is being wiped away and the child is welcomed into the church by all those family members gathered around. I especially like the personal baptisms, where one family presents a child to be baptized into the Church, rather than the large gatherings of 5-10 babies at one time.
I'm not sure I can totally explain the overwhelming feeling I have when I watch or have actually been in attendance at a baptism. It is such an awesome mystery and such a beautiful Sacrament.
Additional Information
Here are some links for more info:
This first one is a list of links to articles on baptism as well as some Q&As.
http://www.americancatholic.org/Features/Sacraments/Baptism.asp
This second link comes from the Catholic Answers website and is specifically about infant baptism:
http://www.catholic.com/library/Infant_Baptism.asp
Finally, if you really want to read something scholarly, here is the part of the Cathechism regarding Baptism or the Christian Rite of Initation, from the USCCB website:
http://www.usccb.org/catechism/text/pt2sect2.htm
Hope this was interesting and that the links above will be even more informative.
Sunday, June 17, 2007
Great Book!!!
I finally finished reading Letters to a Young Catholic by George Weigel. It was a great book and I highly recommend it to everyone.
We read it with our Young Adult group at Church. I thought it was very good and I really learned a lot. He writes this book like a series of letters and, as the title suggests, he addresses all the letters to the younger generations, specifically those in their 20s and possibly 30s. He also kind of takes you on a "tour" of the Catholic world, visiting different churches, holy sites, and monasteries. It was really very interesting. Along the way he uses the places he visits and his discussions to get into specific Catholic teachings; that's where I learned a lot more about things that maybe I had a small understanding of previously, or possibly no understanding of at all.
I highly recommend this book to anyone interested in learning more about the Catholic Church. I found it full of interesting stories and he very much takes a mentorship role as he speaks to his readers. I liked that approach a lot. This is definitely a book worth taking the time to read.
We read it with our Young Adult group at Church. I thought it was very good and I really learned a lot. He writes this book like a series of letters and, as the title suggests, he addresses all the letters to the younger generations, specifically those in their 20s and possibly 30s. He also kind of takes you on a "tour" of the Catholic world, visiting different churches, holy sites, and monasteries. It was really very interesting. Along the way he uses the places he visits and his discussions to get into specific Catholic teachings; that's where I learned a lot more about things that maybe I had a small understanding of previously, or possibly no understanding of at all.
I highly recommend this book to anyone interested in learning more about the Catholic Church. I found it full of interesting stories and he very much takes a mentorship role as he speaks to his readers. I liked that approach a lot. This is definitely a book worth taking the time to read.
Monday, June 11, 2007
Catholic Topic of the Week 1
You may remember my post from about a week ago, Just thinking, in which I mused about the possibility of doing a Catholic Topic of the Week. Well, I got one response with a question to consider. So because of that and just because I like the idea myself, here is the first Catholic Topic of the Week.
The question I received had to do with marriage and had multiple layers. I will take each apart one at a time. Also, don't forget that I don't necessarily know what I am talking about. I will provide references where I find them and I welcome further comments if you have more information to add than what I could find. So here goes ...
First, I was asked about deacons being able to perform a marriage. Actually the deacon is the first witness of the marriage, as would be the priest if the priest were the person presiding. The couple actually marries each other. The bride and groom are receiving the sacrament of matrimony and therefore "perform" the marriage together. Remember also that the marriage, to be valid, has two parts. First they give their consent to marry and express their vows to each other in the Church and, second, they consummate the marriage act together. Therefore, whoever presides is there as the first witness. See the Catechism of the Catholic Church (CCC) at 1623 and 1630, plus the paragraphs around those all deal with marriage as well.
But the real answer to the question was about the deacon presiding at the celebration. The simple answer is yes. Deacons are ordained clergy. I think we sometimes forget this and only think of them as men who are their to help the priest in our parish church. But they are ordained clergy who profess obedience to the Bishop during their ordination just like a priest does when he is ordained. Deacons have roles in the church that also include sacramental roles. CCC1630 refers to both Priests and Deacons as ministers of the sacrament of marriage. Deacons can also baptize and preside at funerals. Deacons also preside at a Liturgy of the Word service if a priest is not around. Each year the priests in our diocese take a retreat together for a few days. During those days the deacons will preside at a Liturgy of the Word/Communion Service during the times when daily Mass is usually held. Communion is distributed if there is some already blessed in the Tabernacle, since the priest (or bishop) is the only person that can do the Eucharistic celebration. The one Catholic wedding that I have attended at which a deacon presided, there was no distribution of communion. So they had the Liturgy of the Word and the marriage ceremony and then the final blessings. There are a multitude of reasons why a couple may choose to get married without a Mass, but that can be a whole other topic. For more about deacons, I found an FAQ on the United State Conference of Catholic Bishops website. Check it our here.
The second part of the question was where a couple can get married according to the Catholic Church. Does it have to be in the Catholic Church? Can it be outside, on the beach maybe, or even in another church? First about outside weddings. The Catholic Church teaches us that marriage is a sacrament that should typically be held as part of the Mass. CCC1621 has a great way of describing this (definitely go read that if you have a chance). A Mass is almost always held in the holy space of the Church. Therefore it stands to reason that you would get married in the Church as well. I happened to come across a short article on this very issue recently, which can explain things much better than I can and I highly recommend reading it. It can be found here: "Catholics Don't Get Married at the Beach!".
The issue of getting married in a church that's not a Catholic Church is a little more difficult to answer. Essentially the answer is yes, you can, but there is a but. My understanding is that a couple getting married in which one person is Catholic and the other is not, can get married in a non-Catholic Church with the consent of the bishop. Ah, I just found the answer!! Thanks to the book Fr. Frank gave Chris and I as a wedding gift, I have found that according to Canon Law 1118: "It [the marriage] can be celebrated in another church or oratory with the permission of the local ordinary or pastor." That's about all I know on this topic.
I think that about exhausts all my knowledge and I believe I managed an answer to all parts of the question that was posed. I would love to hear more comments or additional information anyone has to add on any of my statements. And if I got something totally wrong, please let me know that too.
Oh, and other topics for next week?? Let me know!!
The question I received had to do with marriage and had multiple layers. I will take each apart one at a time. Also, don't forget that I don't necessarily know what I am talking about. I will provide references where I find them and I welcome further comments if you have more information to add than what I could find. So here goes ...
First, I was asked about deacons being able to perform a marriage. Actually the deacon is the first witness of the marriage, as would be the priest if the priest were the person presiding. The couple actually marries each other. The bride and groom are receiving the sacrament of matrimony and therefore "perform" the marriage together. Remember also that the marriage, to be valid, has two parts. First they give their consent to marry and express their vows to each other in the Church and, second, they consummate the marriage act together. Therefore, whoever presides is there as the first witness. See the Catechism of the Catholic Church (CCC) at 1623 and 1630, plus the paragraphs around those all deal with marriage as well.
But the real answer to the question was about the deacon presiding at the celebration. The simple answer is yes. Deacons are ordained clergy. I think we sometimes forget this and only think of them as men who are their to help the priest in our parish church. But they are ordained clergy who profess obedience to the Bishop during their ordination just like a priest does when he is ordained. Deacons have roles in the church that also include sacramental roles. CCC1630 refers to both Priests and Deacons as ministers of the sacrament of marriage. Deacons can also baptize and preside at funerals. Deacons also preside at a Liturgy of the Word service if a priest is not around. Each year the priests in our diocese take a retreat together for a few days. During those days the deacons will preside at a Liturgy of the Word/Communion Service during the times when daily Mass is usually held. Communion is distributed if there is some already blessed in the Tabernacle, since the priest (or bishop) is the only person that can do the Eucharistic celebration. The one Catholic wedding that I have attended at which a deacon presided, there was no distribution of communion. So they had the Liturgy of the Word and the marriage ceremony and then the final blessings. There are a multitude of reasons why a couple may choose to get married without a Mass, but that can be a whole other topic. For more about deacons, I found an FAQ on the United State Conference of Catholic Bishops website. Check it our here.
The second part of the question was where a couple can get married according to the Catholic Church. Does it have to be in the Catholic Church? Can it be outside, on the beach maybe, or even in another church? First about outside weddings. The Catholic Church teaches us that marriage is a sacrament that should typically be held as part of the Mass. CCC1621 has a great way of describing this (definitely go read that if you have a chance). A Mass is almost always held in the holy space of the Church. Therefore it stands to reason that you would get married in the Church as well. I happened to come across a short article on this very issue recently, which can explain things much better than I can and I highly recommend reading it. It can be found here: "Catholics Don't Get Married at the Beach!".
The issue of getting married in a church that's not a Catholic Church is a little more difficult to answer. Essentially the answer is yes, you can, but there is a but. My understanding is that a couple getting married in which one person is Catholic and the other is not, can get married in a non-Catholic Church with the consent of the bishop. Ah, I just found the answer!! Thanks to the book Fr. Frank gave Chris and I as a wedding gift, I have found that according to Canon Law 1118: "It [the marriage] can be celebrated in another church or oratory with the permission of the local ordinary or pastor." That's about all I know on this topic.
I think that about exhausts all my knowledge and I believe I managed an answer to all parts of the question that was posed. I would love to hear more comments or additional information anyone has to add on any of my statements. And if I got something totally wrong, please let me know that too.
Oh, and other topics for next week?? Let me know!!
Friday, June 08, 2007
Break Time
I'm taking a small mental break from work at the moment. I'm in the middle of checking work others have done and I keep running into the same problem ... so I need a small break.
It's been a pretty boring week around here. The most exciting this was the rain at the beginning of the week and the hail on Tuesday. It's raining again today. We really need to rain.
I did hear that the invitations to the bridal shower that my bridesmaids are having for me went out. I've heard from several people about how awesome the invitations look. I can't wait to see them! I'm looking forward to being in Atlanta for a few days and seeing everyone. It should be lots of fun.
In the meantime, Chris and I have a busy weekend planned ... but busy with lots of fun things. We're going to see the second Pirates of the Caribbean movie, we're going to go dancing Saturday night at "Swingin' on Main," and Sunday we're going to a party at a church choir member's house for all the music ministry. In the middle of all that I need to clean my house before my parents come to visit later next week.
I hope everyone else has lots of fun plans for the weekend!! Don't forget that Sunday is the Feast of the Most Holy Body & Blood of Christ, or more commonly known as Corpus Christi Sunday. I hope you enjoy the celebration and get a chance to participate in a procession of the Blessed Sacrament around your Church (I've done this in the past, but I think we'll be going to a different Mass this year).
Many blessings to you all!! K
It's been a pretty boring week around here. The most exciting this was the rain at the beginning of the week and the hail on Tuesday. It's raining again today. We really need to rain.
I did hear that the invitations to the bridal shower that my bridesmaids are having for me went out. I've heard from several people about how awesome the invitations look. I can't wait to see them! I'm looking forward to being in Atlanta for a few days and seeing everyone. It should be lots of fun.
In the meantime, Chris and I have a busy weekend planned ... but busy with lots of fun things. We're going to see the second Pirates of the Caribbean movie, we're going to go dancing Saturday night at "Swingin' on Main," and Sunday we're going to a party at a church choir member's house for all the music ministry. In the middle of all that I need to clean my house before my parents come to visit later next week.
I hope everyone else has lots of fun plans for the weekend!! Don't forget that Sunday is the Feast of the Most Holy Body & Blood of Christ, or more commonly known as Corpus Christi Sunday. I hope you enjoy the celebration and get a chance to participate in a procession of the Blessed Sacrament around your Church (I've done this in the past, but I think we'll be going to a different Mass this year).
Many blessings to you all!! K
Tuesday, June 05, 2007
Just thinking ...
I have been thinking since Saturday and today I think my thoughts finally congealed into something worth talking about. Basically the class Chris and I took on Saturday made me wonder how most people would react to that class if they are either non-Catholic or Catholic but either not practicing or not well-versed in what the Church teaches.
This class had a lot of things in it that I would have found totally surprising 5 or more years ago. Today, I am much more informed and the class was reinforcement or better explanations of what I already knew. Even maybe subconsciously knew.
Now, I am by no means a scholar nor do I claim to know a whole lot about the Church. But I like learning new things. I'm also a librarian, so I know how to find things too (or I should, in theory).
So I had a thought: how about starting a "Catholic Topic of the Week" on this blog.
This means that I have to plan to post something like that once a week, which might take some planning, but hopefully you'll all forgive me if I miss a week.
I was thinking it would be fun to learn new things, to provide links for more information on a topic, or just to reflect on a Church teaching. Plus, all my non-Catholic friends might find it helpful to see what the Catholic Church is all about, since I know there are lots of misconceptions out there.
So, I think I might try this for a little bit and see how it goes. But first I need a topic. Anyone have a suggestion for a great way to begin? Once I have an idea I can do a little research and post something next week. I don't plan on getting theological (I can probably point you to those blogs if that's what you want). I want to keep it simple: just little windows into the Catholic Faith.
Any suggestions?
This class had a lot of things in it that I would have found totally surprising 5 or more years ago. Today, I am much more informed and the class was reinforcement or better explanations of what I already knew. Even maybe subconsciously knew.
Now, I am by no means a scholar nor do I claim to know a whole lot about the Church. But I like learning new things. I'm also a librarian, so I know how to find things too (or I should, in theory).
So I had a thought: how about starting a "Catholic Topic of the Week" on this blog.
This means that I have to plan to post something like that once a week, which might take some planning, but hopefully you'll all forgive me if I miss a week.
I was thinking it would be fun to learn new things, to provide links for more information on a topic, or just to reflect on a Church teaching. Plus, all my non-Catholic friends might find it helpful to see what the Catholic Church is all about, since I know there are lots of misconceptions out there.
So, I think I might try this for a little bit and see how it goes. But first I need a topic. Anyone have a suggestion for a great way to begin? Once I have an idea I can do a little research and post something next week. I don't plan on getting theological (I can probably point you to those blogs if that's what you want). I want to keep it simple: just little windows into the Catholic Faith.
Any suggestions?
Monday, June 04, 2007
Weekend Update
We had a good weekend this past weekend. Friday night we watched Pirates of the Caribbean, movie 1. Chris had never seen it, so before we go to see the third movie in the series, I thought it would be a good idea to see the first two. Hopefully we'll watch the second movie next weekend.
Saturday we had another marriage prep class. This one is run by the diocese, so we had to go to the Catholic Center for the class. It was an almost all-day class; it was also the best class we've been to so far--much better than the Marriage prep class at our parish. The title of the class was "God's Plan for a Joy-Filled Marriage." Mostly we watched a video of Christopher West speaking and between video segments we had some opportunities for personal reflection and couple discussion. Despite watching a video for most of the day, it was a really good video, Christopher West is a really good speaker.
Basically the class revolves around the Catholic Church's teaching and theology on marriage and family, including lots of details about the sacrament itself, and sexuality in marriage. There was also a section on NFP, which was just review for us. Christopher West's work is primarily based on John Paul II's Theology of the Body talks he gave in the late 70s and early 80s during his Wednesday general audiences at the Vatican. It was definitely a worthwhile class to take, even if Chris and I were already familiar with and on board with these teachings.
After the class we stopped at this new pizza place near Chris' house. This place makes the pizza pie, wraps it up for you, and then gives it to you to take home and cook. So we brought one home, put it in the fridge, and then went for a walk. We needed the walk after sitting all day. We made a salad to go with the pizza and I have to say, eating a fresh pizza was really good. We also watched the movie A Man for All Seasons. I gave it to Chris as a birthday present last weekend. It's one of his favorite movies, but I had never seen it. It was really good. If you haven't seen it, I recommend it. It is about St. Thomas More and his struggle with King Henry VIII.
Sunday was a good day. We went to Church and then back to my house where I proceeded to clean out my fridge and pantry of all the bad foods and make a shopping list for myself. Chris took a quick nap. We then went out to Ramsey's for lunch where we met up with a college friend of mine who was in town with his wife. I hadn't seen them since their wedding two years ago, so it was really good to catch up and see each other again. And Chris finally got to meet someone from my college days. After lunch we went shopping (stocked up on lots of fruits and veggies) and then relaxed for a while longer before going back to Church to meet Fr. Frank.
Our meeting with Fr. Frank was fun: we went through the pre-rehearsal rehearsal for the wedding. I hope in four months that I remember everything we did! It was nice to see how we would be standing, what the bridesmaids and groomsmen will be doing, and just where everyone will need to be when. He also answered some of my questions so now I feel a bit more confident when discussing things with my florist, photographer, and wedding coordinator and anyone else I may need to talk this through with.
That was about it for our weekend. I hope to have a productive week this week and I pray for the same for all of you.
Saturday we had another marriage prep class. This one is run by the diocese, so we had to go to the Catholic Center for the class. It was an almost all-day class; it was also the best class we've been to so far--much better than the Marriage prep class at our parish. The title of the class was "God's Plan for a Joy-Filled Marriage." Mostly we watched a video of Christopher West speaking and between video segments we had some opportunities for personal reflection and couple discussion. Despite watching a video for most of the day, it was a really good video, Christopher West is a really good speaker.
Basically the class revolves around the Catholic Church's teaching and theology on marriage and family, including lots of details about the sacrament itself, and sexuality in marriage. There was also a section on NFP, which was just review for us. Christopher West's work is primarily based on John Paul II's Theology of the Body talks he gave in the late 70s and early 80s during his Wednesday general audiences at the Vatican. It was definitely a worthwhile class to take, even if Chris and I were already familiar with and on board with these teachings.
After the class we stopped at this new pizza place near Chris' house. This place makes the pizza pie, wraps it up for you, and then gives it to you to take home and cook. So we brought one home, put it in the fridge, and then went for a walk. We needed the walk after sitting all day. We made a salad to go with the pizza and I have to say, eating a fresh pizza was really good. We also watched the movie A Man for All Seasons. I gave it to Chris as a birthday present last weekend. It's one of his favorite movies, but I had never seen it. It was really good. If you haven't seen it, I recommend it. It is about St. Thomas More and his struggle with King Henry VIII.
Sunday was a good day. We went to Church and then back to my house where I proceeded to clean out my fridge and pantry of all the bad foods and make a shopping list for myself. Chris took a quick nap. We then went out to Ramsey's for lunch where we met up with a college friend of mine who was in town with his wife. I hadn't seen them since their wedding two years ago, so it was really good to catch up and see each other again. And Chris finally got to meet someone from my college days. After lunch we went shopping (stocked up on lots of fruits and veggies) and then relaxed for a while longer before going back to Church to meet Fr. Frank.
Our meeting with Fr. Frank was fun: we went through the pre-rehearsal rehearsal for the wedding. I hope in four months that I remember everything we did! It was nice to see how we would be standing, what the bridesmaids and groomsmen will be doing, and just where everyone will need to be when. He also answered some of my questions so now I feel a bit more confident when discussing things with my florist, photographer, and wedding coordinator and anyone else I may need to talk this through with.
That was about it for our weekend. I hope to have a productive week this week and I pray for the same for all of you.
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